The invention refers to a carrier for conveying horses, particularly a trailer, with a tub-shaped substructure mounted on a chassis, at the rear end of which the entry and exit door is provided, and with a roof supported on the substructure.
On the roads, horses are mostly transported in horse transport trailers which, in the majority of cases, are pulled by a passenger car. In some cases, self-propelled horse transport carriers are also used, but the use of these is basically limited to professionals. The invention primarily refers to but is not limited to road transport carriers of this nature. Thus, the concept of "horse transport carrier" also includes any kind of transport boxes suitable for other means of transportation, particularly for aircraft.
Frequently, horses will let themselves be moved only with greatest difficulty into the interior of a horse transport carrier; many horses will shy before or while entering into the darker interior of the horse transport carrier, which is closed in the direction of their view. Often, they can be convinced to enter the transport carrier only after a long time and with great effort. This is particularly due to the fact that for reasons of traffic technology, the horse transport carrier must not exceed a certain height. A great height also means a large impact surface for wind, particularly side wind. Accordingly, the roof of a horse transport carrier is significantly lower than that of e.g. a stall in the stable.
In order to simplify the entry of the horses into the horse transport carrier, transport carriers are already known which have a door not only in the rear wall--as does the horse transport carrier initially mentioned--but also in the front wall. This front door is opened when the horse is to enter the transport carrier, and closed as soon as the horse is inside it. A chest bar is provided so that the horse will not exit through the front door.
However, such horse transport carriers with two doors have not been successful. On one hand, the chassis must be more solidly designed than for horse transport carriers with only one door, since the stability is decreased by the second door. Secondly, the door provides merely a lower opening which, although it allows light in the interior in the transport carrier, nevertheless blocks the obliquely upward vision of the horse. The horse will mainly get an impression of being sent into a narrow passage of which the upper area cannot be recognized, and the result is a feeling of being closed in.
This is where the invention is advantageous. An object of the invention is to avoid the disadvantages of the known horse transport carriers with two doors and to further develop the horse transport carrier of the nature mentioned initially, so that the spatial limitations of the horse transport carrier cannot be appreciated by the horses at the moment they enter into or leave the horse transport carrier. Thereby, a solution was to be found which also makes it possible to remodel existing horse transport carriers while simultaneously ascertaining that the insulation against draft and wetness (rain) which has been achieved in current horse transport carriers is not lost.
On the basis of the single door horse transport carrier of the nature initially mentioned, this problem is solved by means of a lift device which can elevate the roof above the substrate and which is located between the substructure and the roof. From a normal, closed position, the roof can be elevated into a position in which a free space occurs between the roof and the substructure.
When the roof is lifted off the substructure, the horse has a free field of vision forwards and towards the sides while entering the carrier, so that it initially does not realize the narrowness of the transport carrier. In the elevated position, the roof is at a level which corresponds to the ceiling height e.g. of a stall in the stable. What is generally achieved is that even sensitive horses can be moved to enter the transport carrier with considerably greater ease than was the case with other, particularly smaller transport carriers (e.g. for two horses).
The design of the lift device is subject to variations; pantograph type systems, lift systems with toothed racks or spindles, etc. are all suitable. In a particularly preferred design, the lift device is developed as a parallelogram system. This system has the specific advantages that on one hand, the movements of the lift systems on the left side and on the right side can be synchronized at low cost, e.g. by connecting the front moving arms, whereby the available interior space of the horse transport carrier remains unchanged. On the other hand, the lift device may be developed so that in the front portion, the roof is elevated more than in the rear portion, i.e. that an inclination is achieved in the elevated position. For the horse, the advantage thereof is that the vision field obliquely upwards is freed in an improved manner.
The lift device is particularly suitable for horse transport carriers with single shell synthetic roof, e.g. of polyester. Such roof shells have relatively high dimensional stability and thus need only a few attachment points to the substructure. However, the lift device can also be installed in other horse transport carriers, e.g. with textile roofs stiffened by means of metal or synthetic ribbing. The particular advantage of the lift device can be found in that it can be activated practically in seconds and with little force, and the operation can be carried out from a location which is comfortably reached.
In the preferred execution already discussed, the legs of a largely rigid, U-shaped hoop form the front sides of a parallelogram; in the area where its legs connect with the base, it is linked to the left and to the right side walls of the substructure, whereby, as far as is possible, the linkage points are located in the front area of the substructure. The parallelogram is completed by two rear moving arms, the effective lengths of which are shorter than those of the front sides, which are connected into one piece. The front moving arms engage approximately below the center of gravity of the roof, so that the function of the rear moving arms is basically only one of guidance.
In a preferred further development, the lift device also includes a telescoping tube with an energy accumulator, e.g. of compressed air or a helical spring. The expansion force is dimensioned so that the roof can be elevated and closed basically without exertion of force. This leaves only the mechanical losses, friction losses, etc. to be overcome in the operation.
Consequently, the lift device can be relatively simply constructed; it is also suitable for later installation in already existing transport carriers. It can also be integrated into the total aspect of the transport carrier in an optically pleasing manner. It can be made totally maintenance free. Opening and closing cause no noises that could frighten a horse.